New Year...

Happy New Year everyone! 2011 was a brilliant year for Vélo-City-Girl. A lot of great stuff that I never expected happened and I met some fabulous people along the way. Thank you all for being such a major part of it and coming along for the ride... and I hope you'll join me this year too!

Suitably holidayed out, I'm getting ready for new adventures on Frankie in 2012. I'm rather pleased that some of the festive treats I got at Christmas will be powering me and the Pashley (and the blogging) along...

... first up, this wonderful book I got from The Boy's Mother

'Britain by Bike' accompanies the BBC Four series of the same name, and includes cycle routes around Britain (which I'm planning on trying if possible), excellent cycling nostalgia and some wonderful photographs and illustrations.

Of course, this section of the book caught my eye, especially learning the origins of the term "loose woman" came from women's cycling fashion!

The next festive-fashion treat which will feature on VCG without doubt is this gorgeous Tatty Devine Owl Necklace, which came from The Boy...

I've got a bit of a thing for Owls on jewellery & clothing AND I've had my eye on this for ages, so top marks to him for remembering. It's been pointed out to me that the Owl's eyes look like bicycle wheels... how on earth did I not pick up on that first?!

My blogging fuel usually consists of Cakes, Coffee or Tea... and this has already been put to use (while I'm writing this actually)

I adore the tea-sets by V&A (another thing The Boy's Mother picked-up on!) and this lovely Bone China Mug now sits long side my mini teapot set I bought early last year

So, expect a lot more cycling, fashion, blogging and everything else that comes in between... 2012 - Lady Vélo is ready for you! 

New Riding Boots...

I'd been in a bit of a quandary recently, hunting out new boots for the Winter. The requirements were simple enough: nothing tacky looking (not wanting to end-up looking like a bad impression of those "Pretty Woman" boots), a nice style that could be matched with almost everything in my wardrobe and of course not too much heel to walk or cycle in. My search finally came to an end when I spotted these on ASOS...

ALFIE Chelsea Boots, £50 

With their trademark elasticated sides, the Chelsea Boot is a practical piece of footwear, being easy to slip on and off and also stands the test of time as a stylish wardrobe staple. Now, the last time I owned a pair of  boots like these, I was in Secondary School: the wannabe Mod in me loved them back then, and the fact they're featuring in current winter trends now shows they are a timeless classic.

These ones ticked all the boxes: fantastic colour, as it's nice to veer away from the usual Black or Brown coloured boots, and they should do a good job on keeping my feet warm and dry while on the Pashley in this weather. I'm going to be putting them to the test tomorrow, as I'm meeting up with Horst Friedrichs for more work on his upcoming Cycle-Style book (big announcement on that to follow soon!) - will let you know how they roll on the bike! 

Vélo-Run for the Tweed Run...

It's less than 24 hours to go until the Tweed Run & unlike my usual organised self, I found myself doing a last minute dash to get the final pieces for the day together!

With a busy week off work, today was the only one I had to sort out some rather important elements of the Tweed Run - including picking up our Registration Packs from Rugby Ralph Lauren! I had a few pleasant surprises when I got there: the 1st was bumping into the lovely Loughton brothers John & Jim, who had just collected their packs from the store!

I met them at the April Tweed Run, so it was lovely to see each other again. Once I'd sorted out the packs for me and The Boy in Rugby (the staff in there are wonderful btw, and possibly the most immaculately dressed in Covent Garden), had my 2nd Surprise - seeing Tony (a.k.a Mr Soul Dandy) who I'd also met last April!

Tony and his brother Victor caught my eye on the Tea Stop and I had to get a picture of them looking super-sharp...

I can't even begin to imagine how good they will be looking this time round... Tony told me a bit about their outfits... pictures of them on the day have to be done!

The rest of my outfit was the next thing on today's agenda which was all about finding a Tweed Blazer (I would have loved a RL one, but I'm a bit too skint for that right now!) and appropriate Seamed Tights and a vanity-fix which was getting my nails done to match my dress. 

Having not booked anywhere to get my nails done, I was expecting utter fail at trying to get seen anywhere on a Friday afternoon for a Manicure - but salvation came in the shape of the O.P.I Nail Bar in Selfridges, who could see me within half an hour of me turning up - result!

They did an immaculate job with my nails - classic round shaping and a deep Red was what I was after, and got exactly that. No doubt I'll be returning there again for another treatment!

The idea of running around Central London after getting my nails done to hunt down a Tweed Jacket? I won't lie, the thought of it filled me with utter dread - thankfully it wasn't a hard or expensive task, thanks to H&M having what I was looking for. The fact there was only one on the rail in my size must have been an omen...

The Seamed-Situation has also been sorted - but you can see those on the day :) 

So, that's it - all set for tomorrows ride. Sadly I can't fix the weather, so I'll just have to wish for sunshine and clear skies for us all... See you at Covent Garden old bean....Pip-Pip!

Coffee | Cycle | Saturday: New Faces & New Places...

I've fallen in love with cycling early on crisp winter mornings... they are the perfect weather setting for the darker months: cool & fresh air in your lungs, bright skies and a sense of peace and quiet all around you. 

You get to take in a bit more of this crazy-busy city when it's quiet - like being able to stop and take shots like this of the ever changing London Skyline & not be disturbed! The slight chill in the air is also a great opportunity to layer-up... and who says you have to wear drab colours in the winter? Me and my chosen Cycle Wardrobe for the day certainly didn't agree with that - inject colours into a cold day!

Headscarf: Tie Rack

Knitted Cardigan: Topshop

V-Neck Jumper: M&S

"LadyVélo" Name Necklace - Tatty Devine

Handbag: Vintage Mulberry

Tweed Shorts: Zara

Tights: John Lewis

Brogues: Topshop

Me and The Boy were greeted with such conditions last weekend, as we headed out for a long overdue CoffeeCycleSaturday. Fellow caffeine fiend & friend Simon cycled in from Surbiton to meet us, and we were joined by a new member of CCS - the lovely Jo Halstead of Vélos and Vagabonds! 

With a new route to explore and a new Coffee and Cake stop to visit, we had a busy day of cycling ahead of us. Before meeting up in Prufrock Coffee, I needed to take an bit of an unusual detour - I had to stop in Soho to pick up a new phone...

After being contacted by Nokia a couple of weeks ago via the blog, I was invited to their London HQ to collect a Lumia 800 to use, review & keep... yes, that's right - VCG is getting a bit more tech-savvy! I ended up being filmed throughout the morning about my experience, so keep an eye out just in case I turn up on the Nokia website! Filming and phone-fun done, we met up with Simon and Jo, fuelled up on Prufrock goodness and then made our way out of the City.

Our new route for this CCC was along Hertford Union Canal - a pleasant stretch of waterway in Tower Hamlets. I put my hand up and admit that I'd never even walked along Union Canal before, so it was interesting to check it out via bike. We were not the only cyclists who had the same idea on a lovely Saturday though...

Fantastic as it was seeing other riders out and about along the stretch, it was also a maneuvering-mash up trying to cycle along it! I wouldn't rule out seeing it by bike again as it's beautiful, but an advance warning to any others reading this thinking about doing it: be prepared for a lot of human and two-wheeled traffic! Coming off the towpath, we arrived at Victoria Park - another place in London that I haven't explored before on the Pashley... and haven't been to since I was a child.

There was certainly plenty of space for us all to cycle together for this part of the day. The Park was beautiful - autumn leaves scattered around, more happy people on bikes & lots of cute dogs to be spotted (Jo is also a lover of Sausage Dogs, French Bulldogs and Pugs like me...) so that brought lots of smiles to our faces!

After a leisurely and enjoyable cycle around the green spaces, we'd built up a suitable thirst and an appetite - perfect timing to ride over to our Coffee & Cake Stop for the afternoon!

A new one for the CCS team and for VCG - allow me to introduce you to Zealand Road Coffee. Located near to Roman Road Market, this is one of the newest Coffee Houses in East London & already has a firm local following...

With a relaxed atmosphere, it's an ideal place for cyclists to stop of and refuel - good coffee, sandwiches and of course damned good cakes are important to me ...

... ZRC certainly gets the Lady Vélo & CoffeeCycleSaturday seal of approval!

It was a wonderful day of Cycling and absolutely delightful to meet Jo. Another CCS is being planned around another part of London. Lets hope the crisp weather remains this way :)  

Winter Cycling Wardobe Updates...

Illustration by Shelia McInnes 

Ok - so it's not that cold just yet but October is actually remembering it's October, and after that random heatwave (which took my wardrobe by surprise) it's finally showing signs of the change of season.

I love wrapping up warm when it gets cold in London, and the time is fast approaching to get a Winter Cycling Wardrobe in order. Having yesterday off work, I took the opportunity to have a look around Westfield Stratford City and discovered two things about it - 1) it's much nicer to go in there on a weekday instead of a Saturday (nightmarish busy madness) & 2) there are some decent shops in there to pick up quick fashion-fixes for my Cycling Wardrobe...

With an idea of what I was after, I'd decided to just visit two of my staple shops: Topshop and M&S. Both of which would be good for what I was looking for - Winter Boots and Cable Knit clothing.

First stop - Topshop. This was the 1st time I'd checked out the Westfield Stratford City one - much bigger than the Canary Wharf branch & lots more variety of stock. Although none of the boots they had on display really called out to me, my attention was caught by items that were not on the agenda...

Red Patent Tassel Slippers: £22

Ring: £10

Breton Stripe Sweatshirt: £26

The Sweatshirt isn't a heavy top, which means that layering it with a jacket, scarves, etc. is possible. It's not super-cold at the moment, but this should still keep me warm on the Pashley and not make me break out into a cycling-sweat! Throw the top together with a pair of Jeans (Skinny or Boyfriend cut) or some straight-leg trousers and those Shoes, and you have a brilliant Beatnik inspired look.

Next stop: M&S.Cycling with cold hands isn't the nicest feeling (especially when my Raynaud's kicks in - ask The Boy, he'll tell you how freakishly cold and colourless my hands can get), but you know me - I've got to have gloves with a bit of style to them...

Fingerless Wool Cable Knit Gloves: £12

Fingerless Gloves are a must for me every winter, especially as I'm either taking pictures, tweeting on my iPhone or doing something that involves needing bare fingers out, without freezing my hands off! Last year's winners were my Purple N.Peal Cashmere ones - but this time M&S did it. They're a simple Cable-knit affair & the Pom-Poms are a cute addition to the design. Impressed with the Gloves, I had a long wander around the store on the look-out for a Jumper in the same style, but had no luck! As I didn't want to spend the entire afternoon in Westfield, I gave up looking and headed out towards the DLR - Passing Forever 21 on the way. I must admit - F21 never appealed to me when it opened, but I thought I'd give it a quick look to see if there was any chance of finding a Jumper: this is the last thing I expected to find...

Sweater: £14.75

... that's right - a lovely Mustard Sweater for a bargain price! This will work really well teamed with a pair of my tailored shorts, coloured tights and brogues (or last years Winter Boots)... another cycling outfit sorted! I was very surprised to find something like this in F21 and felt a bit bad for never really giving the place any thought on my shopping radar. I'll certainly pop in there again to see if there are any more pieces I can mix into my wardrobe & not break the bank at the same time.

I'll still be on the hunt for more winter warmers to add to my wardrobe - it's not about being freezing cold on the Pashley when the bitter cold creeps in :)